Halloween (Samhain) 2011

Gather 'round the bonfire, burning so bright

Watch the shadows dancing, in its flickering light

As the music starts, and we begin to dance

Just maybe, if we're lucky, ahhhhh perchance

We shall see some kindred spirits, as they pass by

On their way to the Summerlands, beneath the Samhain sky.

--- Akasha

Photo by Jeremy Dodgen

Photo by Jeremy Dodgen

Happy Halloween!

Bits Of Goodness - Knights, Dragons and Medieval Swap

Bits of Goodness is a lovely swap group that I've been a part of for almost 3 years.  I love it!
You basically craft 5 items, ship them to a hostess (make her a lil something too) then she sends you back 5 different items.  Yes please!  This way I can craft in front of my kids, send them in and then be all sneaky about other handmade goodies (like under pillows, for birthdays, for rainy days..etc.).  It's a group that adheres to a natural materials guideline.  No plastic, no rayon, no acrylic.  Think "Waldorf" toys and you've got the idea.

Here's the items I received in the Knights, Dragons and Medieval Swap along with their makers' info:

Catapult with felted cannonballs - by Samantha

Golden chest filled with treasures - by ?

Gorgeous felt dragon - by Angela

Wooden knight and his Dragon egg - by Hallie

Young Archer - by Priscilla

I made these olive oil/hemp oil based soaps with organic lavender.  I found an amazing celtic dragon mold just for this swap.

Enjoy the bits of goodness, and join us if you like!

Dehydrator Diaries - Crazy 4 Curry

Hi there.  So glad you guys liked my snack post, it was fun...maybe more in the future?!?  For those that asked, the bunny breakfast boards can be found here at Nova Naturals.  I have one for each girl, but I would totally love to get new ones this year with another animal....anyone out there a woodworker?  Couldn't find any on Etsy...
The verse I wrote out is one we used in our Waldorf playgroup. I do not know the original author, but it's a pretty common one used in Waldorf schools. 

On to the dehydrating!

I love curry, I really do.  It's no surprise that my D was busy wafting curry smells all over the neighborhood last week.  Many of the items here were on our snack plates from yesterdays' post.

Here you see Curried Almonds, Curry Crackers and Crooked Curry-licious! 

Can you see them actually?  Geez, that picture is awful.  Most of my major dehydrating prep is at night after the littles have gone to sleep.  I can get more done in a smaller time frame that way.  Hence the dark and out of focus photo.  Ahem.

The curried almonds are just basically soaked and drained almonds tossed with curry powder and sea salt, then dehydrated overnight to get their "crunch" back.

The curry crackers are these, but the pulp used was a kale/celery/apple blend...and an extra dose of curry.

The funny looking seaweed wrapped thingies are a yummy snack that I make for the girls.  It was inspired by a recipe from LifeFood Recipe Book: Living on Life Force by the Jubbs.  I wasn't happy with the recipe (sorry!) but after some changes, it's now a favorite!

Crooked Curry-licious
1 handful of sun dried tomatoes (soaked at least 4 hours, then drained)
1 cup hemp seeds
1 cup raw cashews
2 large cucumbers (sliced)
1/4 cup miso (we use this chickpea miso)
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup Bragg Liquid Aminos
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup dulse
2 Tbs curry powder
5 Tbs raw honey
Nori sheets to roll it up in

Throw all the ingredients into the food processor and whirl it until smooth.  Then take your nori sheets and divide them into 4 smaller squares.  Plop a tablespoon full of the mixture into the small nori square and roll it up.  Pat your finger in water and use it to seal the edges of the nori.  Place them all on the dehydrator screen and dehydrate them at 115 degrees for at least 24 hours.  I know...a long time, but worth it! The edges get crispy while the center is still sort of moist and chewy.  These little snacks are nutritional powerhouses with all the seaweed and hemp seeds going on.

This recipe makes about 100 of these lil snacks (yes...I said 100!) so feel free to halve the recipe.  My crew eats them all up in about 3 days.  Keep them in an airtight container in the fridge.

Enjoy!

Snack

Snack.
Snack.
Snackie snack!
If you have kids, you know what I'm talking about.  These kids never stop eating.  You finish cleaning up after breakfast, you turn around and one of the little buggers is hungry again!
Actually, I don't mind feeding them as much as I mind cleaning up afterwards (no dishwasher).

A blog I like to read (Mamaroots) did a post on snacks and asked what other mamas out there in Blogland like to feed their kids at snack time.
I was inspired to share a weeks worth of snacks. 
Now, if I aimed to capture every snack eaten by one of my kids every day last week, there would probably be 1000 pictures here.  So I just focused on our morning snack.  It's actually part of our homeschool day.  While F is finishing up her Main Lesson, E will help me prepare the snack and set the table.  We say a little verse and we all eat together.  Our verse usually changes every season, but for now it's:

For the golden corn

For the apples on the trees

For the golden millet,

and honey for our tea

For fruits and nuts and berries

that grow along they way

Dear Father Sun and Mother Earth

We give our thanks today.

Monday : Carrots and raw caramel dip

What it looks like afterwards...just for giggles...

(Yes!  That is a baby C foot on the table.)

Tuesday : Pumpkin hummus topped with pomegranate seeds and curry crackers

Wednesday: Squash curry, curry crackers, apples, guacamole, peach watermelon...

(Wed. is park day, so the whole afternoon consists of snacks interrupted by monkey bars and swings, and jungle gyms.)

Thursday: Pumpkin/hemp smoothie and curried almonds

Friday: Asian pears and Curry Snacks

And that's that...so what are you snacking on this week?!?

xo

CSA Update and Ice-Cream Beans

Hi there!
So, I used to blog about our various CSA's alot, just click on the CSA label if you want to read them all...I'm kind of a freak about them.  I totally love seeing what's in them each week, it's like veg-head Christmas!  So to fuel my passion I thought I'd share 1 weeks worth of CSA shares for our family.

On Mondays we pick up our Tanaka Farms CSA box.  These are all straight from the farm (except sometimes they partner with another local organic farm to get more fruit in the box).

Broccoli

Oranges

Pomegranates

Yellow Squash

Acorn Squash

Bell Peppers

Carrots

Radishes

Apples

Oregano

Romaine Lettuce

(see the little hand?  That's E on her 2nd passion fruit from Farmer Steve)

Every other Monday we pick up a Farmer Steve box.  Who's Farmer Steve?  An organic farmer of course!  He's from San Diego which still qualifies as local in my book.  He drops off where the Tanaka boxes, so that makes for a very easy pick up.

Large Pumpkin

Large Watermelon

Apples

Oranges

Limes

Avocados

Asian Pears

Pomegranates

Grapes

Persimmons

On Thursdays we pick up our box at The Growing Experience.  Every single thing in this box is grown on premises.  It is an amazing little farm doing all kinds of amazing things.  They just set up their first aquaponics.  They will be showing it off at Their 3rd Annual Harvest Faire (Nov 10th 2-5pm).  Anyways, my girls love coming here becasue they can go off and play in the Native Garden while I fart around and get my veggies all sorted.  We always feel very welcome there!

Acorn squash

Eggplants

Apples

Potatos

pomegranates

Bok choy

Lemongrass

Mint

Tomatoes

Collard Greens

Zucchini

Okra

Bag of mixed greens

Ice-cream beans

What's that?

What's an ice-cream bean you say? 
Well, it's this...and it's yummy. :)

You can read about them here and you can come taste one here.

What CSAs are you a part of?  I love seeing what's "local" in other parts of the country.  Here in Southern CA we are blessed with a ridiculously kind growing season. :)

Pomegranate Love

Go on...do the pomegranate thing!

It's worth it!!

These little anti-oxidant powerhouses will be eaten in no time at all!  We like them just how nature intended, but I searched a bit and might give these recipes a try...if there's any left tomorrow.

Kiwi Salsa

Pom-Persimmon Fruit Salad

Yum

Love - N - Links

I kinda love these boot cuffs, but it's one of those "love and will probably never get around to making" things. Let me know if you do make them!


Check out this hat!  The Hudson Hat.  It is the perfect pattern for using up those yarn scraps.  Maybe it will get me away from making these. 
FYI:
#6 is off the needles...

and I'll probably finish #7 tonight...It's for E, she picked a lovely red merino yarn.

I had a chance to whip out another vintage pillowcase skirt...I love how easy these are to make!

So, I've been reading this book.  Crazy how such a tiny book is taking me SO long to get through! 

Anthromama does a beautiful study on the book, breaking it down by sections.  I enjoy reading her insight and thoughts on it, although I don't always agree.  Curious...have any of you read it?  It's certainly easier than Theosophy!

~Spread the love~



A Blessingway

Being of light, you are ready to come

Being of light, in these arms you will stay

Your body is small, yet your soul knows no boundaries

Please come here to Earth, to lighten my way.

~For you, baby Meyabadi

Yesterday I co-hosted a Blessingway for a dear friend of mine.  A woman I have known for almost 20 years!  It was an amazing experience to hold a sacred space for the mama-to-be.  This will be her 3rd child and we wanted to do something special for her.  To help her connect with her baby and to let her know how much she is loved.  A huge thank you to the real hostess who did almost everything.  You are a special light in this world Ms. K!

I get a lot of questions about Blessingways and birth celebrations. In an effort to keep this one special and sacred I did not take many pictures and I won't detail everything that we did. I will, however, offer some links and books to help guide you in leading one of your own.  Whatever your faith, and whatever your beliefs, a Blessingway can help prepare and make way for a new life to come into this world into open arms...

Timeless Spirit
Freestone
Tenner
Birthing From Within

To keep you in my heart and send blessings of love for the labor and birth of your new little light!